Karnataka   

‘BJP image dented because of allegations of corruption'

CANDID TALK: Shripad R. Pikle speaking at the inauguration of the BJP office in Karwar on Sunday.

Karwar: The Bharatiya Janata Party and Bharatiya Jana Sangh were regarded as the parties of honest and patriotic people. But the BJP is slowly losing the image because of the allegations of corruption and the scams, said Shripad R. Pikle, senior BJP leader and one of its founders in Karwar.

Dr. Pikle was inaugurating the party office in Karwar on Sunday.

He said leaders like Shyama Prasad Mukherji, Deen Dayal Upadhyay, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, and L. K. Advani dedicated their life for the cause of the party. Until a few years ago, the Jan Sangh or the BJP were not only political parties but also political movements. Now, everybody was after power. “We are ready to sacrifice principles for the sake of power,” he lamented.

Dangerous trend

Party-hoppers, politicians with bad reputation, corrupt and selfish elements were gaining upper hand in the BJP which was a dangerous trend, he said.

Recalling the days when the Jana Sangh and BJP came into existence in Uttara Kannada district, Dr. Pikle said dedicated party workers and volunteers of RSS worked hard to build the party in the district about 50 years ago. They loved the party and took the issues to masses. As a result, the BJP and Jana Sangh strengthened their base in coastal Karnataka, he said.

Selfish forces got into party once it gained hold at the grass-roots level. These forces made B.S. Yeddyurappa-led government face constant threats of destabilisation. People are not sure when the selfish and power hungry politicians within the party will destabilise the government with the help of Congress and JDS, he said.

Asnotikar ‘sorry'

Anand Asnotikar, MLA, apologised for his rebellion against the party recently.

Mr. Asnotikar said he did not act against the party and insisted it was a bad moment. He promised to visit the party office at least once a week and hear the grievances of the party workers.

Uttara Kannada district unit president Prasad Karwarkar said that it was time to take the programmes of the BJP government to the people.

He said only 700 days are left for the next Assembly election and the party workers should counter the misinformation campaign launched by the Opposition parties. Rajesh Nayak, town BJP president and Arun Nadkarni, taluk president, welcomed the gathering.

General secretaries of the party, Gaja Surangekar and Ratan Durgekar, the former MLA Gangadhar Bhat were present.

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